> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://help.bizmachine.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://help.bizmachine.com/en/search-and-filtering/searching-contacts-by-role.md).

# Searching for contacts by role

How to find decision-makers in Prospector with ready-made role categories, without knowing the exact job titles.

*Updated: 30 September 2026*

Find decision-makers in Prospector by role instead of by exact job title. Pick a category, for example **Top Leadership**, and Prospector lists the people in that role at every company in your segment, with the contact details it found in public sources.

This article covers finding and filtering contacts. For exporting contacts and the credits an export uses, see [How credits and limits work in Prospector](/en/lists-and-export/credits-and-limits.md).

### How role categories work

Categories are ready-made groups of positions in a tree structure. Each category collects the different titles companies use for the same role, so you do not have to know what the position is called at a particular company.

The first level lists the types of leadership and the departments:

* Top Leadership
* Finance
* Regional Leadership
* Procurement
* Marketing
* Sales
* IT
* HR
* Operations
* Engineering
* Other

Click the arrow next to a category to open its more specific subcategories. For example, **Top Leadership** contains **Managing Director** and **Director**, and **Director** in turn contains **CEO**, **Company Director**, **Deputy Director**, and other director roles.

You can also type into the search box above the tree. Prospector highlights every matching position, and **Select all highlighted** selects them all at once.

![Category tree in the Department and role filter (Contacts and Roles group), filtered by the search term "direc"](https://247275268-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FYkl7SJ14Nk0vzhVx7upl%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-be388b3bc18cbbdf2e324f8535cb4769bc8ddff9%2Fsearching-contacts-by-role-kategorie-strom.png?alt=media)

### How to search for contacts by role

1. In Prospector, [open **Companies**](https://prospector.bizmachine.com/v3/en/datasets/cz/search?sfc=true) and build a segment of the companies you are interested in.
2. Click **Add filter** and open the **Contacts and Roles** filter group.
3. Under **Personal contacts**, open the **Department and role** tree and select one or more categories. Confirm with **Apply filter**.
4. Switch to the **Contacts** tab. The list shows the people at the selected companies who match the chosen roles.

For each record you see the name, the role, the company, and the contact details available from public sources.

![Contacts tab with the Roles and Contact Type controls above the results list, which has the columns Name, Company Name, Role, In Role From, and Email](https://247275268-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FYkl7SJ14Nk0vzhVx7upl%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-246d8414eb761bfd23a82eec6efa426e54280773%2Fsearching-contacts-by-role-vysledky.png?alt=media)

### Filtering by contact type

On the **Contacts** tab, the **Contact Type** dropdown complements the **Roles** filter: you can narrow the results to people who have a specific type of contact, for example an email address or a phone number.

Available types:

* **Phone**: a direct phone number
* **Email**: a work email address
* **LinkedIn**: a link to the LinkedIn profile

![Contact Type dropdown on the Contacts tab with the options Phone, Email, and LinkedIn](https://247275268-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FYkl7SJ14Nk0vzhVx7upl%2Fuploads%2Fgit-blob-be30f33e4e8e71f29aa3d53072d7e895ed732195%2Fsearching-contacts-by-role-typ-kontakt.png?alt=media)

You can set the same filter before you open the **Contacts** tab: in the **Contacts and Roles** filter group, under **Personal contacts**, use **Available contacts**.

Combine both filters to get precise results. For example, **Top Leadership** + **Email** shows only the leaders who have an email address.

To skip contacts you have already exported, turn on **Exclude already exported** on the **Contacts** tab. This way you do not work through the same records twice.

### Frequently asked questions

**Where do the contact details come from?** All of them come from public sources: company websites, commercial registers, professional networks, and other publicly available sources. Prospector does not use a private database.

**Are the contacts up to date?** The data is updated continuously. The date of the last check is shown in the company profile under **Personal contacts** (the **Last check** column), and you can filter by it with **Last contact check** in the **Contacts and Roles** group. For older contacts, verify the details before you use them.

**What if nobody at a company is in the category I am looking for?** The results show only the people Prospector found in public sources. If a company does not publish who holds a role, or the person has no public contact details, that company has no results in the category. An empty result here is not an error in the data.

**Can I select several categories at once?** Yes. Selecting several categories shows the people from any of them.

**What is the difference between a role category and searching for one position?** A category covers a group of related positions at once. For an overview of decision-makers across companies, we recommend a category. For one specific position such as "CTO", type it into the search box above the **Department and role** tree and select only the matching positions.

### Related articles

* [How to create a segment in Prospector](/en/search-and-filtering/creating-segments.md)
* [How credits and limits work in Prospector](/en/lists-and-export/credits-and-limits.md)
* [Labels as a workflow system](/en/lists-and-export/labels-as-a-workflow.md)